


Charles is Not Mary Poppins

by EmBug



Category: X-Men (Movies), X-Men: First Class (2011) - Fandom
Genre: Charles runs a daycare, Erik is Crushing Harder than a 12-year Old Girl, Erik is a dad, Fluff, Hella, M/M, WIP
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-11-28
Updated: 2014-12-29
Packaged: 2018-02-27 06:53:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 10,240
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2683358
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EmBug/pseuds/EmBug
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Erik has a problem. The daycare he sends the twins to is shut down. Charles feels indebted and ends up becoming a live in nanny that Erik falls in love with.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

                Erik groaned and dropped his head into his hands, running his fingers through his hair over and over. He couldn’t believe this was happening. How was he supposed to deal with two somehow always sugar crazed mutant children _all day_. There was no way.

                He loved his children dearly, of course. Pietro and Wanda brought him an insane amount of joy and he doesn’t know what he would do without them. But they are just so much to handle along with balancing his company. Why Erik ever thought opening his own engineering firm was a good idea is beyond him. Fortunately for him, his business was flourishing and he and his children were well off.

                Erik worked from home to cover all the hours the daycare hadn’t covered. Magda hadn’t reacted well when she found out that she was going to have twins, right before they were going to buy a house together, of all times.

                “If you want these kids so bad Erik, you are raising them all by yourself. Them or me” she had said.

                He had chosen the children. And through all of the colicky nights and trying to figure out how to hold two teething infants, he sometimes wish he had put more thought into that decision. But when Wanda’s first words were ‘papa’ and Pietro walked on wobbly legs into his arms, it was all worth it and he didn’t regret a second.

                Here they are, four years later. He had two beautiful children than he loved more had thought he was capable of.  People always told him he was rather distant. That he couldn’t show emotion unless it was accompanied by his shark like smile.  He doted on the twins more than he probably should, for all he complained to his business partner Azazel about them being spoiled.

                As soon as he realized that at 2, Wanda had the power to manipulate probability, by having the sudden urge to give her the rest of the cookies even against the slim odds that he would, and that Pietro had a keen interest for speed, he knew that he wouldn’t be able to do it alone. He had at a time considered making them wear some sort of metal at all times and keep them levitated above his head while he worked, it didn’t seem realistic.

                So Erik found himself scouring the internet for hours trying to find a suitable daycare for his children, and that would also cater to their abilities. Just as he was about to give in to his previous ideas, he found it.

                The Xavier Daycare for Gifted Youngsters.

                It was run by one Charles Xavier, who himself was a telepath. Erik could see how that would come in handy when dealing with small children.

                After doing intensive background checks, no one could ever accuse him of not caring for his children’s safety, he signed them up to start the following Monday.

                While Erik had never personally met Mr. Xavier, Wanda and Pietro had absolutely loved ‘Mr. X’, as all the children at the daycare called him. At dinner they would tell story after story of their adventures, and proudly showed their Papa what they had learned that day.

                Except for today that is.

                Usually Erik waited patiently outside the building for the twins to appear. The daycare building was close enough to walk to and gave him a break from his home office.  But today a shorter man with neatly combed dark hair and the bluest eyes that Erik had ever seen popped his head through the door.

                “Mr. Lehnsherr? I’m Charles Xavier, the teacher? If you have a minute, I have some things to discuss with you”. The cardigan wearing man had a distinct British accent, which was more attractive to Erik than it should be.

                He internally groaned, thinking of all the possible things his children could have gotten into.

                At least he thought it was internal until Charles laughed. He must have looked confused because Charles was ready with an apology.

                “I’m terribly sorry, friend” he tapped a finger to his temple, “It’s hard to keep everything out now and then, especially after a log day. I will try my best to stay out of your head. Though I assure you, your children are absolute angels”

                Erik snorted, “Obviously you haven’t tried to get them into bed”

                Charles laughed. Erik felt the urge to make this man laugh his personal duty. And where did that come from? Remembering that Charles was a telepath, Erik quickly reigned in his thoughts.

                “The children aside, well this does pertain to them I suppose, mind stepping in for a quick chat?”

                Charles led him through a short hallway that was covered floor to ceiling with various paintings and drawing that the student had made. Some of them had cheery messages written in shaky capital letters, all addressed to none other than Charles Xavier.

                “The children seem to love you. Not just mine, either” Erik remarked when they finally sat in what Erik presumed was Charles’ office. He could hear his kids and some others playing in the adjoining room.

                “Don’t worry, my assistant Hank is watching them. And, yes, it seems that way. Which is why this is so sad” and he did seem genuinely upset. Someone as great as Charles should never be upset.

                _“Ok what the hell Lehnsherr? You’ve just met the man. Stop thinking about his eyes, and that stupid cardigan, and his laugh and oh, get it together”_ Erik thought to himself.

                “You see, not everyone is kind to mutants, as you know. I think Pietro mentioned you can manipulate metal?” Charles asked, leaning forward and eyes glimmering with curiosity.

                Suddenly the pen that had been lying on the desk picked itself up and wrote ‘yes’ on a spare piece of paper, quite neatly, Erik thought smugly.

                And there was that laugh again, this time colored with astonishment.

                “Such fine control too! That is amazing Mr. Lehnsherr”

                Erik held up a hand, “Just Erik please”

                Charles offered him a small smile, “Alright then Erik. Then you should call me Charles. But back to the matter at hand. The mutant community isn’t always treated with respect. And as such, the local government has been trying to get me shut down for years.

                “Somehow, they managed to catch me with tax fraud. In all reality, I assure you, they had just managed to convince the IRS that my fours look like nines and I was trying to pay less taxes. So they finally have the excuse they have been looking for”

                Erik felt his jaw drop. This daycare had prevented him from going insane these past two years. Having the twins running around at night was enough to drive him up the wall. And here he was, head in his hands.

                Charles stood up, walked around the desk, and knelt by his chair. A hand covered his own and gave it a comforting squeeze, causing his head to snap up and stare into those gorgeous eyes.

                “I understand that this is hard for you, especially since I have gathered that the mother isn’t around. Your children love you, and you love them. Try not to throttle them” he lightly joked.

                “Clearly I love them. Your school came with quite the price tag, Charles”

                “To which I apologize. Some things we can just not get around. If there is anything I can do for you, Erik, please let me know” and by god, Erik believed that he meant it.

                “Unless you are also a nanny service, there isn’t much you can do”

                He had meant for it to be a joke, even if a tiny part of him was dead serious. But apparently desperation was clear on his face.

                “I could do that. I am in need of a job now”


	2. Chapter 2

“I could do that. I am in need of a job now”

Erik gawked at the man before him. Did he seriously accept an offer to be a nanny for a man he just met five minutes ago? There was no way Erik could force Charles into such a labor intensive job. He could be a good father and watch over his own children by himself just fine. He would just have to start fashioning those metal plates to attach to them.

“When could you start?”

Erik gawked at himself. What was his traitorous mind thinking? He wasn’t going to let a strange man into his house.

“As soon as we discuss salary and housing arrangements. Technically the school has been formally shut down for about a week now, from a business standpoint. I just didn’t want to alert the parents until everything was final”

“Why don’t we discuss it now? I have nowhere to be”

Apparently he was going to let this strange man into his house. Was it the telepathy at work? No, it couldn’t be. Charles would never do that.

_“Like you would know. You literally just met him. He may be cute but you can’t let him gain your trust so quickly. Mistakes happen that way”_

_“Erik, while I said I would keep to myself, you are thinking rather loudly. Ease your mind friend. You can look at my certifications if it would put you at rest”_

Erik blushed at the thought of Charles being able to read his mind without much effort. And if he was being completely honest, it was kind of a turn on. But he put some of his focus onto keeping his thoughts close.

“Sorry about that, truly. It gets hard at times” Charles said, as he absent mindedly shoved little toys and papers from his desk into his bag. 

Most of the office had been cleared out, it appeared. Just last minute touches. Charles continued to rattle on apologies as keepsakes upon pens upon crayons were swept up into his bag.

“-acutally there was this one time that I still feel embarrassed about and, oh, could you get that for me darling?” Charles asked, referring to a wind up robot that had been knocked off the desk.

Erik openly stared at Charles while he used his powers to lift the toy up to him. No one had ever called him that before. Not even his mother. She was more of a ‘my little one’ type of person. And for it to come from someone he just met, well he couldn’t quiet process it.

“So there I am without pants and in this person’s head. Perfectly atrocious I tell you. Thank you” Charles accepted the toy out of the air and gave Erik the most dazzling smile he had ever seen.

_“Oh god I’m screwed. Shit he can hear me”_

If Charles did hear him, he didn’t show it. Just as Erik was about to ask him if he wanted to discuss the technical matter of the work here or somewhere else, his children came barreling into the room. Pietro reached him first, of course and clambered onto his shoulders, sliding halfway down his back and effectively choking Erik. Wanda was much more polite and primly set herself on her papa’s knee.

Erik rested one hand on Pietro to make sure he didn’t fall and gave Wanda a one armed hug.

“And how was your day, Kleinen?” he asked them.

He probably should have addressed them separately because they both launched into completely different stories. From the snatches hat he heard, Pietro almost ate a bug, and Wanda accidently set a paper on fire. And in the true light of being siblings, they were telling about the other.

While the twins kept chattering on, Erik looked up to see Charles smiling fondly at him.

“You’re good with them” he commented, “It’s quite adorable”

Erik half-heartedly glared at him, “I will have you know, I am a mean spirited business man with no time for such things like being called adorable”

Wanda saw this as a prime opportunity to interject herself into the conversation, “He is! If we aren’t good he doesn’t let us have dessert. Even if we say please!” as if such things were violating the Geneva Convention.

“Why would I give you ice cream if you’ve been bad?” Erik asked, not that he particularly cared about their opinions on his parenting.

“Because it’s yummy” Pietro answered, like that explained everything.

“Well how about we stop by for ice cream on the way home? I mean, Mr. X might even join us”

_“If that’s ok with you? I figured there is no better place to negotiate job opportunities”_ he added mentally.

_“I would love to”_

 

The ice cream parlor that the Lehnsherr’s frequented, to the point of the workers knowing their names, had a small play area that the twins immediately ran to. Erik had visions of having two tummy-aching four year olds laying on his couch later that evening. But he had important, life changing matters to attend to. Unfortunately for him they included a one Charles Xavier, who he found himself quickly becoming enamored with.

“Now I’ve never had an at home service for my children so I don’t know how to go about this” Erik admitted, poking his plain vanilla sundae with a spoon. He didn’t have much of a sweet tooth and only ordered to make Charles feel less awkward.

Charles had ordered a sugary monstrosity, full of chocolate and marshmallows and a rather frightening amount of cherries.

In between the bites he was shoveling into his mouth, Charles tried to school his features into something more professional and not so gleeful from all the ice cream.

“It depends on you really. I am going to need Tuesday evening’s off, I’m afraid. I teach a genetics class over at the university”

Erik’s eyes widened in surprise, “You’re a genetics professor?”

Charles waved a dismissive hand, “It’s no big deal really. I mean, it’s what I went to school for and all. I love it but I love working with children more. Especially the ones with abilities. Still has its ties with genetics you see”

“But you look so young” Erik said, still surprised.

“I may have been a bit of a nerd in school. Graduated early by two years. I did most of my college an thesis work online so that went faster as well” Charles was blushing and trying to get the words out as fast as possible, not used to people being interested in his academic life.

Perfectly lovely, was all Erik could think. That blush did wonders for his blue eyes. He hadn’t been this sentimental with Magda ever. And he had known her since childhood. He’s known Charles for less than a day.

“That is amazing Charles. Of course you can have whatever time you wish off. I don’t know what your living arrangements are like, but if you would want, I have plenty of room to house you”

Erik couldn’t believe the words coming out of his mouth. He could barely contain himself now, watching Charles happily eat ice cream and talk about his astounding intelligence as if it wasn’t anything special. How in the hell would he be able to deal with a sleepy morning Charles? A lazy Sunday Charles? A playing with his kids Charles?

He’s screwed.

“You wouldn’t mind? Having another person in your house?” Charles asked.

“Not at all. The house is too big for the three of us, honestly. It would probably do better too. The kids like to wake up with the sun”. Nothing their father could ever manage.

“If it doesn’t bother you that would be great. If you are housing me, I guess we don’t need to discuss salary then”

“Nonsense. I’ll pay double of whatever you earned from the daycare. And health benefits. I’m sure I could get you on our insurance”

Now it was Charles’s turn to look shocked, “I couldn’t possibly accept that much generosity”

“Yes you can. And you will. My children love you and this would really be a service to me. I do work from home but I can’t do it all” Erik found himself admitting.

What was this man doing to him?

Charles reached over the table and laid a hand o Erik’s arm, “You don’t understand how much I appreciate this Erik. Really”

Erik felt his face heat up. If this was a date, he would be leaning over and kissing him.

He wanted to kiss Charles. This was bad.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kleinen= little ones 
> 
> The next chapter will be the children's reaction and maybe Charles moving in, depending. It will be posted hopefully tomorrow, at the latest Sunday.
> 
> And thank you for the feedback!


	3. Chapter 3

Just as Erik predicted, the twins dragged themselves over to the table, looking minutes away from getting sick.

“As fun as this was Charles, I think it’s time to head home” Erik said, hefting both kids up into his arms with a practiced movement. Four years of carrying them around became more of an art than a science to him.

“It seems so. Give me a call whenever you are ready for me to start moving in” Charles scribbled down a number on a spare napkin and tucked it into Erik’s pocket.

He knew that I was because his hands were obviously occupied by toddlers but the slide of another person’s hand in his pocket sent a shiver up his spine.

“Move in?” Wanda asked sleepily, head resting on Erik’s shoulder with her hand fisted in his shirt.

In lieu of answering that very complicated question he just shifted her more onto his hip and lightly shushed her. There wasn’t much of a protest from her as she closed her eyes. Charles once again had that sappy smile on his face that was becoming more of a frequent look whenever the twins were around.

They both lived on separate sides of town, which, Erik thought, wasn’t going to be for much longer. So they parted ways at the door of the ice cream shop, with promises to call later.

Since he was carrying them instead of walking with Pietro running circles around him, the walk went faster, yet was torture on his arms. Thank god for his powers or he wouldn’t have been able to get the door to their house open. With just a sparing thought, the knob turned by itself, easily being command by Erik’s mind.

He hadn’t been lying when he said the house was a bit overkill for just three people. Especially since the twins still insisted on sharing a room. Erik was sure once Wanda got a bit older, she would be the first to want to move across the hall.

It was a grand two story house, with expensive wood flooring and modern appliances. The intended look of the house was a great contrast from the toys and various macaroni art that were spread on every available surface. Erik had always dreamed of a pristine house, with white furniture and the works. He grew up in a home where money was tight and wanted a chance at the opposite. Those dreams were exchanged for child proof locks on the cabinets and slightly sticky table tops. When he thought about it though, it wasn’t such a bad deal.

He deposited the twins on the couch and switched on one of their cartoons. Both of them were in that odd stage between awake and sleeping and Erik intended to make the most of it while he could. Before he could do that though, he had to make sure they were settled in.

Since the possibility of two sick four year olds was looming over his head, he put a bowl between them on the couch in false hope that they would use it. He knows from experience they won’t. If they do get sick they would rather get up to tell him and then he has to change his pants. But that won’t stop him from trying. He checked the medicine cabinet to make sure they were stocked with children’s stomach medicine and noted down a few things they needed. Dinner tonight would probably be soup on the couch with some Disney movie playing.

Once he was sure the kids were settled, he grabbed his laptop and settled down in a chair across from them to get down to work. Azazel had sent him a few files for review before they were sent off and he had a new project to tweak.

Erik was pretty engrossed with his work before the twin felt better enough to start asking him a myriad of question.

“Papa. Papa. Papa!” Wanda and Pietro chanted to get his attention.

With a sigh, he closed his laptop, “Yes?”

“Is Mr. X really going to move in?” Two sets of wide blue eyes were trained on him.

Without any way to go about this, Erik just went for the truth, “Mr. X is going to live with us to take care of you two since the daycare was shut down”

“Does that mean I don’t have to wake up early a’more?” Pietro asked. He always talked in a rush and even as an advanced four year old he still had trouble with some pronunciation.

Erik rolled his eyes, “No, you still have to wake up. It will be just like daycare except at home. Ad if I work late Mr. X can help with dinner and bedtime”

“Yay! It’s like you and Mr. X are married!” Wanda shouted, bouncing on the couch, eyes going wide when she realized her tummy was still hurting and quickly stilled.

Erik choked on his own spit. To a four year old, that may make sense. But for Erik who was starting to develop quite a crush on Charles, it was a scenario he shouldn’t let his mind play with too much.

“It is nothing like that. He is still your teacher. Speaking of which, how about you two get washed up for dinner while I call him”

“I wanna talk to ‘im too!” Pietro insisted. With a look from Erik though he was scampering off to wash up with his sister.

Pulling the napkin out of his pocket, he saw a number written in a handwriting he saw often on the papers the twins brought home. He dialed the number and didn’t have to wait long for Charles to pick up.

“Erik?” Charles answered.

“How did you know it was me?” Erik had never called before.

“You’re number is on the children’s emergency cards. I have all the parent’s numbers memorized”

Erik found himself being reminded of Charles’s intellect.

“I never thought about that, I guess. So do you know when it would be most convenient for you to move in?” Erik asked, changing the subject so he couldn’t embarrass himself gushing over Charles.

“Well, I have to call my landlord. And pack. Buy boxes to pack up with. I didn’t think about how much work was going to go into this. It is only Monday though. So if I get busy, Sunday would do splendidly”

Erik walked over to the calendar where he kept all of his conference call dates and doctor’s appointments “That should be fine, yes. My colleague has a truck I could borrow to help”

“Oh no! You are doing so much already. I couldn’t possibly make you lug around heavy boxes on a Sunday”

“Too bad” Erik said, smiling.

“You are a stubborn man, Erik” he could hear Charles’s matching smile through the line.

“You don’t know the half of it”

“I guess I’ll have to learn then”

There was an awkward silence as each man realized that this could be taken as flirting.

“Well, um, I have to uh, make the kids dinner” Erik stuttered, immediately wanting to slap himself in the face.

“I’ll leave you to it then” Erik really hoped Charles was blushing.

The line went quiet again, not knowing who should hang up.

“Bye” he finally managed to get out and hung up abruptly.

Erik laid his head on the counter and groaned, muttering curses in German. Now he remembers why he hasn’t dated since Magda.

He felt a tug on his sleeve, “Papa we’re hungry”

Right. Fatherly duties. Not obsessing over men he just met. Even if they were cute. And had gorgeous blue eyes. And would be moving in to his house on Sunday.

What had his life become?

“What soup do you want?” he asked the twins.

“Chicken noodle!” “Tomato!”

The corresponding cans of soup floated themselves out of the pantry, along with an extra tomato. Pans were summoned out of cabinets and the electric stove started by itself. Sometimes he really loved his powers.

Soon enough, he was seated in the middle of the couch with a warm bowl of soup on his lap. Wanda on his left and Pietro on the right, each with trays under their bowls because they can’t even be trusted with sippy cups in the living room.

The intro to Mulan played softly and the lights were dimmed. Surrounded by his family, Erik felt calmer than he had all day. Yeah, sometimes he wished he could have the perfect house, but with moments like this, he couldn’t think of anything better.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aw, sappy ending!  
> Looks like Charles is moving in next chapter.


	4. Chapter 4

Erik was confident in the belief that Charles lived in the tiniest apartment to ever exist.

It was more like a motel room, if anything. As soon as Charles opened the door, he saw an almost nonexistent kitchen with no table to eat off of to be seen. In what he assumed was supposed to be the living room was an obviously second hand couch surrounded by literal piles of books.

 “Sorry if it’s a bit of a mess. I started packing already so” he said this as he scurried around trying to make things more presentable.

Erik walked up to him and put a hand on his shoulder, “It’s ok, I don’t mind really. I’m here to help you pack, not have dinner with the Queen”

With that, they got to work. Charles had sectioned everything off into categories already. It was just a matter of packing and taping and labeling and carrying. Most of the carrying was done by Erik, which he didn’t mind. If he happened to flex his arms a bit more when Charles walked by, well, no one had to know.

Soon enough everything was packed strategically into Azazel’s truck so it would make it in one trip. Erik had actually just deposited the boxes outside on the curb, passing them to Charles as he pointed out specific ones. Charles would rearrange and flip and rotate every box until they fit perfectly.

“I play a lot of Tetris” was his only explanation.

Azazel was already at the house because it had been his job to babysit. The kids were oddly find of the red man. And moving was hard enough anyways without two small flurries of energy running around. Mainly Pietro.

With the once again empty truck and a curb full of boxes, Azazel pried Wanda off of his leg and went to climb into his truck.

“To work on a _Sunday_ to oversee major project _someone_ decided to give to _first years”_

Erik just shrugged, “They have to learn somehow”

“By giving them projects you would struggle with?”

“I don’t know what you are talking about. I never struggle”

“How about April of 2008 when you-“

Erik slapped a hand over Azazel’s mouth, “That is enough out of you. Go put some minions back in line”

With a mock salute, Azazel sped off.

Charles sidled up to Erik, “What happened in 2008?”

Erik blushed. He didn’t even like to think about what a crisis that had been. In his defense, it was when he had first started the company and had a bit of an ego when it came to his abilities. In the end, he had to transfer the project over to Shaw, the jackass who pretended he could compete with Erik.

“Nothing” Erik answered instead.

Charles just laughed and picked up a box, “I could always just find out myself, you know”

“Azazel or telepathy?” Erik asked, following Charles with a box of his own.

“Both”

 

Erik had cleared out one of the guest rooms he always had prepped for Charles. It wasn’t like they got many guests. Azazel or Emma, an old friend from college, never spent the night, unless they were passed out drunk on the couch. His mother visited when she could, which wasn’t often enough in Erik’s opinion.

So there already was a decent sized bed with a nightstand on either side. A nice dresser was on one wall, and there was a desk tucked into the corner. The whole room was done up in black and white, because past that his style was deemed atrocious by Emma.

“Two shades of purple should never be remotely close together, sugar. Magenta shouldn’t even be a color”

All of Charles’ belonging fit nicely into the room. His clothes fir in the closet, his papers filled the drawers perfectly, it was all almost _too_ easy.

Then came the problem.

Where in the hell were they going to put all of Charles’ books?

There were just _so many_ of them. From everything to genetics to children’s books, it seemed like Charles didn’t not read anything. And he insisted that he had read all of them cover to cover at least once, many of them twice or more. Erik found himself crushing harder with each word, being a book lover himself.

As a result of that, the Lehnsherr household did have quite a few bookshelves but they were full of Erik’s engineering manuals and nonfiction novels and the twins’ books.

When he brought it up with Charles, he just shrugged, “I can just stack them like I had them before. I don’t need you to be anymore accommodating. You’ve done more than enough my friend”

“I have never heard anything more ridiculous in my life Charles. I’ll buy you a bookshelf”

“How about I buy it with my first paycheck?” Charles compromised.

Erik sighed dramatically, “Fine. But I’m building it”

Once again, they were caught in an awkward silence. The world seemed to stop for a moment. Everything narrowed down to just Charles. With his stupid cardigans and multitudes of books. And his rather obnoxious amount of tea he had insisted on bringing.

He would have been content to stare into Charles’ eyes all day if he could. All he wanted to do was to take those few steps and bridge the gap between them. To kiss Charles senseless.

“Daddy!”

Or not.

“Yes, Pietro?”

“It’s lunch time”

Erik looked down at his watch. Sure enough, it was indeed lunch time.

“Care to join us Charles for some peanut butter and jelly sandwiches?”

Charles laughed that wonderfully warm laugh of his, “Don’t mind if I do”

Over their sandwiches, the twins practically interrogated Charles. It made Erik more than a little embarrassed, considering he was the only one to blame for their manners.

“Are you going to stay here forever and ever?” Wanda.

“Let’s take it a day at a time, shall we?” Charles.

“Do you like raspberry jam? Daddy does. I saw him eat it with just a spoon once” Pietro.

“Pietro!” Erik.

“Yes I do. And did he now? I’ll have to remember that” Charles, accompanied by a positively devilish smile.

“Are we gonna play later?” Wanda, asking the practical questions.

“Of course. Which games are your favorites?” Charles.

And that effectively derailed the children from their questionnaire to start shouting over each other to try and win Charles’ attention. If Erik was being honest with himself, which he never was, he felt like shouting too. For similar reasons, which worried him. He’s in too deep if he is on the same rational level as his four year old children.

“Alright, let’s leave the poor man alone” Erik interrupted, “How about you each go pick one game each to play with Mr. Xavier while I clean up”

With that, the twins raced towards their rooms to go hunting around for action figures and board games.

“Let me help you” Charles insisted, taking a plate out of Erik’s hand.

“I can clean after here other people Charles. It was sandwiches, not a four course meal” Erik said dryly, rolling his eyes.

“I know. But it makes me feel better to repay you”

What can he even say to that?

“You wash, I’ll dry”

They fell into an easy rhythm, like they had been doing this for years. Sure, it was only a simple enough task that didn’t require much teamwork. But there was something so smooth in how Charles would finish washing a plate just as Erik had put the last one away.

In too short of a time in Erik’s opinion, they finished. Erik tried to think quickly of something to say to continue to be with Charles before his children stole him.

“Is something on your mind Erik?” Charles asked, concern lacing through his words.

“Uh, I just. Thinking about work, yeah” he managed to stutter out.

_‘Smooth Erik, smooth’_

“It’s a Sunday Erik. This is a day of rest, not stress”

“That’s hard to do when you have a bunch of buffoons working for you” Erik replied.

“If you thought they were good enough to hire, they can’t all be bad”

Erik snorted, “You would be surprised. Actually, I have to call Azazel to make sure he didn’t kill those idiots”

Charles nodded and peaked his head around the corner into the living room, “I’ll leave you to it then. I believe the kids have everything set up for me”

“Have fun” Erik said, smiling all too knowingly at the adventure Charles had waiting for him. His knees remembered plenty of hours spent on the floor doing the same thing.

“Somehow I don’t think you mean that” Charles had a matching smile, he had been a daycare teacher after all.

Erik headed towards his office while Charles went in the opposite direction to be with the twins. This would be his life now. Charles playing and taking care of his kids while he worked. Having meals with another adult for once.

It wasn’t such a bad change.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one was a bit of a struggle. I'm not 100% happy with it but I rewrote it about four times and this was the best one. Hope you like it! And thanks again for the feedback, I love and encourage it.


	5. Chapter 5

Life in the Lehnsherr household was going smoothly. In the short time Charles had been living with them, they had developed a sort of routine.

Erik woke up at six am, as he always has. He would change quickly into running clothes and run a mile or two around the city. He usually came home before seven. A shower came next and he would get dressed in normal clothes.

This is when Charles worked himself into Erik’s day. He would already be slumped at the counter, nursing a cup of tea. A mumbled good morning would escape his lips and Erik would nod in acknowledgement. Despite Charles’ usually sunny demeanor, he was not much of a morning person.

Once Charles felt like his normal self, he would wake up the twins while Erik made breakfast. Today was eggs and toast, both of which he could make without really touching much. Erik always felt particularly domestic at this time of the day. Here he was, cooking for his family, while Charles would rouse up the kids. While he kind of liked it, he didn’t exactly like the implication of him being the woman very much. Especially since Emma would kill him for thinking such a misogynistic thing.

When Charles made his way back down, he would usually slide a hand across Erik’s back when reaching for the juice for the kids. Or touch his arm to keep him still when they almost bumped. More pet names and terms of endearments slipped by as Charles wasn’t fully functioning.

It drove Erik positively insane. And it definitely wasn’t because it bothered him. He wished a kiss would accompany those little touches and that the pet names carried a little more meaning. Mentally sighing, he waved a wrist towards the spatula to make it flip the eggs over easy.

And another thing, Charles’ telepathy went a little haywire and he would sometimes comment on someone’s surface thoughts. So Erik made sure the kissing thoughts stayed nice and close, and let the others drift to make sure he didn’t come across suspiciously guarded. At times like these, he was glad Emma was a telepath. Plenty of training.

“That is incredibly misogynistic. I think I would like this Emma person you keep talking about”

“Thinking about, Charles. I was thinking. And she is evil. She has Satan under her thumb”

Putting a plate of eggs in front of each of the kids, Charles laughed, “I highly doubt she’s that bad”

“Clearly I haven’t been thinking the right things about her” Erik commented as he sat down himself, between Wanda and Charles.

“Sorry about that” he said with a self-deprecating smile.

Erik patted his shoulder, hand lingering a moment longer than it should, “I don’t mind. You have free reign in there”

Erik himself put forward some of the touches that were passed between the two. Charles was such a tactile person it didn’t come across as weird. Whenever Erik would cross that metaphorical barrier that separated them, Charles would smile extra wide and Erik could feel Charles radiating happiness and warmth.

“So what do you have planned today?” Erik asked, talking to the kids but knowing Charles would end up answering.

“We’re pra’sing letters today!” Pietro quite literally yelled.

“Pietro. Inside voice” Charles gently admonished.

A blush spread across Pietro’s cheeks and he quietly muttered an apology.

Erik was in shock. He had never been able to get him to quiet down so fast. Maybe there was a bit of telepathy at play. Or maybe Charles was just that good.

“Which letters?” Erik had learned early on that the kids loved when he was interested in all the little things they did.

“A and all the way to E” Wanda said proudly.

“They are doing really good. I’m very proud” Charles said, with actual pride in his voice. Erik just wanted to hug the shorter man. He had never met someone so genuine.

“You’re going to have to show me later” Erik replied, gathering up the remnant of breakfast and sending them into the sink without standing up.

When he looked over, Charles had that awed look on his face he always got when Erik showed his powers. It was a nice change to be in the presence of someone who actually liked to see people’s gifts. Erik always heard him encouraging Pietro to see how fast he could go, or for Wanda to try to levitate something with her magic. It was good for the kids, and Erik too. Mutants weren’t always appreciated out there.

“Well we are off to learn the wonders of A to E. I’ll get you for lunch?” Charles asked, even though that had was what they had been doing for the last couple of days.

“Absolutely”

* * *

 

“I’m fucking screwed”

“This is a business call, Lehnsherr”

“Remind me not to do anything nice for you, _Frost”_

Emma was look at him unimpressed through the screen. They were supposed to be Skyping about the new project that didn’t seem to be physically possible but Emma was determined to prove him wrong.

When Erik realized she wasn’t going to cave, he started complaining about his non-existent love life.

“You have never done anything nice for me”

“Guess who’s present I’m returning then”

“So about this Charles”

“Greedy bitch”

“I’m trying to help! Is he cute?”

Erik turned bright red, “Maybe”

“Oh god you have it bad”

He rolled his eyes, “You think?”

“And he’s the nanny? Isn’t this the plot to Mary Poppins?”

“My life is not a musical”

“I wouldn’t be too sure. Just ask him out. He’s looking after your kids. He has to like you”

“Are you insulting my children?”

“No, I’m insulting you’re parenting”

“Why In the _hell_ did I make you godmother?”

Emma shrugged, “I think you were drunk. I must have been too if I agreed”

Suddenly, the door to his office opened.

“Erik, it’s time for lunch. Fish sticks or chicken nuggets?” Charles said, like it was a very serious decision.

“Are they the dinosaur nuggets?”

“Of course”

“Then those. Emma, I have to-“

“Oh is that Emma! I’ve been dying to talk to her!”

Charles ran over behind his desk and propped his chin on Erik’s shoulder.

“So you must be Charles. Aren’t you adorable” Emma had a predatory smile on her face that was making Erik uncomfortable.

“Please. Have you looked in a mirror lately? You are stunning darling”

Erik was _not_ jealous, not at all.

“I think that’s enough of you two. God help me if you became friends” Erik closed the laptop, not before hearing some obscenities from Emma.

“I think there was talk of some dinosaur chicken nuggets?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the wait. I had family over and the like.  
> Hope you enjoyed! Leave a comment if you did


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this one is going to jump ahead a few months, because I like to get to all the fluffy, domestic parts. I'm thinking this will be about six more chapters or so. And then if you guys really like it I will be happy to turn it into a series, which might include some of the events that happen between this chapter and last.

Charles had officially been working for Erik for six months now. Erik and the kids had never been happier. Charles just fit so perfectly into their lives, it was like he had always been there.

Somewhere along the way, the twins had stopped calling Charles Mr. X. It was now a simple Charles, Charlie when Charles himself wasn’t in the room, as he despised the nickname. At first, Erik was scared that they were getting too attached. What if Charles decided that he didn’t want to be around them anymore and left? The twins would be heart broken.

Erik would be heart broken.

And that was when Erik realized that it had gone farther than a simple infatuation with the man who happened to take care of his children. He had been so scared that Charles was a temporary thing that he had pushed such fears under the guise of concern for his children.

If he thought it was hopeless before, this was a whole new level.

He had this realization of being _so in love with Charles it was ridiculous_ _holy shit what do I do_ when they were having their customary movie night.

Charles had talked about how he had loved having them with his sister Raven when they were younger. Raven had left to become an actress and they don’t get to talk much. So when one day he off handedly mentioned that he loved movies because it reminded him of his sister, Erik had declared within two seconds that they were going to have a movie night. And every Tuesday since, Erik, Charles, Wanda, and Pietro have sat on the couch and watched at least one movie. Wanda would curl into Erik’s side and Pietro would lean on Charles and hog the popcorn.

The kids would usually fall asleep before the notion of a second movie even crossed any of their minds. While the credits rolled, each of them would pick up one of the twins and carry them into their rooms. Once the door was shut firmly behind them, they would decide whether or not another movie was in order.

Tonight they were well into their third movie of the night, The Princess Bride. It was one of their mutual favorites that wasn’t entirely a children’s film.

Just as Westley was out-smarting Vizzini, Charles noticed Erik’s slight panic.

“Are you alright there love? You seem, well, distressed”

The light from the TV was oddly flattering on Charles’ face. It lit up his eyes, making them a static blue. Erik couldn’t look away, and was lost in a sudden rush of memories.

When they put up the Christmas tree that was in the corner of the living room. Charles had almost killed himself trying to put up the star. Even Erik couldn’t reach it. So Charles climbed onto Erik’s shoulder to delicately place the shimmering star on the tip top of the huge tree. Wanda and Pietro hung up ornaments that Charles had helped them make. Little pictures of their family in decorated frames.

When they took the twins to the zoo and almost lost Pietro because he ran to the cheetahs and neither of them could read the map. Charles eventually gave up and used his powers to find Pietro’s racing thoughts _I could run faster than that_.

When Wanda had a vicious nightmare that didn’t end for hours and Charles stayed up with Erik as he held his daughter late into the night.

When it was just the two of them. In moments like this. Just like this. Sitting in companionable silence, wanting nothing more than to just be with each other. Where if Erik wants to talk, he can send out a quick thought directed at Charles. It’s moments like this where Erik has shared more about himself than he ever has before. How he hadn’t though he was going to see 20 because he was so full of anger. That sometimes he wanted to give up.

Charles did the same. Telling Erik secrets that he had held close for years. About his stepdad and how he grew up living in constant fear. That he felt like it was his duty to protect Raven, which extended to all vulnerable people as he grew up.

It was much easier to share these thoughts when you didn’t have to say them out loud. It almost felt like you weren’t telling anyone at all. Until of course Erik felt the mental hum of Charles trying to comfort him.

“I think I love you” Erik whispered, almost to himself.

For a few seconds, it was pure silence.

“Oh thank god. I thought I was going to have to live with unrequited love for the rest of my life” Charles said with a sigh of relief.

Erik was dumbstruck. Did something actually work out in his life with minimal effort? Did he just waste the last six months thinking Charles could never like him back?

“Are you serious?” he finally managed to get out. The line between his brain and mouth was short circuiting. He could barely think straight, let alone talk in coherent sentences.

Charles laughed, “As a heart attack. I have been flirting with you for _months_ Erik”

Erik allowed himself a smile, “You call that flirting?”

“Oh you’re one to talk, Lehnsherr. You’re a dense as a block of wood sometimes”

“You love it”

“Yeah. Yeah, I do”

The weight of the words they both spoke hit them all at once. They sat on the couch, looking at each other as Princess Buttercup was reunited with Westley.

They both started laughing as the silence had become too much.

“Kiss me?” Charles asked. Erik couldn’t tell but he was sure that he was blushing.

A few beats passed as Erik waited.

“As you wish” he said in time with Westley on the screen.

“You did not just do that”

“Considering taking back your request?” Erik asked jokingly.

A determined look crossed Charles face, “Never”

Charles leaned forward, placing a hand on Erik’s shoulder. Their lips met after a quick fumble with bumping noses. It was one of the best kisses Erik had ever had. It came with a rush of relief, like a drink of water after working out in the sun all day. It wasn’t a particularly heated kiss, just soft and gentle, taking their time.

Their teeth clashed when they tried to shift their awkward position. Erik found himself laughing, as was Charles, and leaned their foreheads together.

“I love you” he said as seriously as he could manage as Rodents Of Unusual Size trampled across the screen.

“I love you too” came the immediate reply, along with another kiss, which led to another, and another.

They were so enraptured with each other that the sound of small feet pattering down the stairs didn’t register.

“Ew! Papa and Charles are kissing!” Pietro yelled.

“So you are going to get married!” squealed Wanda, clapping excitedly.

Erik groaned as Charles his face in Erik’s neck, laughing slightly.

“We are not getting married but you are going to bed. You too, Pietro” Erik called over Charles’ head, not feeling like getting up to make sure they actually went to sleep.

“I love them too, you know” Charles said, settling into Erik’s side and pressing a kiss to the underside of his jaw.

“But you love me more right?”

“You are such a child”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you liked it!!  
> Feel free to comment and kudos and bookmark your way into my heart.  
> If any one is so inclined, fan art will never be a bad thing because I can't draw to save my life.


	7. Chapter 7

With the kids safely tucked away in bed for sure this time, Erik didn’t know what to do next. If light kissing woke them up, there was no way he and Charles could actually have sex. So they were at a standstill, not really knowing what comes next. Do they go to their separate rooms? Do they try to sleep together? Does Erik stay up all night staring at the wall awkwardly?

“For God’s sake Erik. I’m not letting you stare at the wall all night. Two people can just sleep _next_ to each other you know”

Charles had the most adorably exasperated look on his face that Erik could only smile dopily back at him.

“Come on love. You need some sleep anyways. Emma is visiting tomorrow”

Erik rolled his eyes, “It’s a business meeting Charles, not a social call. And anyways, she talks so much I could probably sleep through the whole thing and she wouldn’t notice”

With his own impressive eye roll, Charles pushed himself off Erik’s lap and held out a hand. Wordlessly, Erik laced his fingers through Charles’ and let himself be led up the stairs.

It was odd, doing this with no end game. Before the twins were born, being led into the bedroom was always accompanied with flirty smiles and fake laughter. After he became a dad, the only ones taking him places were the kids, dragging him to see some drawing or another.

But with Charles, everything was done in silence, but not in an awkward way. There wasn’t a need for useless words to try and attempt to impress the other. They had both seen each other half dead trying to replace sleep with coffee. Had seen each other sick after the twins had effectively passed along the flu. Had seen each other covered in mud after a day at the park.

In a way, it was like the past six months had been an entire life. From the stilted first meeting to comfortable love. Erik had never experienced anything like it and he never wanted it to change.

They reached the bedroom and Erik started working on undoing his belt and tie, which he insisted on wearing even though he worked from home. He speedily and efficiently got himself down to an undershirt and boxer while Charles was struggling with the buttons on his shirt.

“Now I can see why you were so eager to go to bed. You’re exhausted” Erik commented, half teasing, half apologetic.

Charles just shrugged, “Part of the job. Not anything I’m not used to”

Erik walked over and betted Charles’ hands out of the way. He untucked the shirts and popped the buttons in record time, “But have you ever had to change out of puke covered clothes and into new ones before small children can wreak more havoc?”

“I do see you have it down to a science” Charles said with a small laugh, warmth dancing in his impossibly blue eyes.

“More of an art really” Erik remarked flippantly with an air of mock nonchalance.

With the help of Erik, Charles managed to get out of his clothes and into a pair of Erik’s sweatpants with relative ease.

“I remember something about a bed?” Charles asked, looking unfairly good shirtless. He was a daycare teacher turned nanny. Where did he find the time to work out?

Erik gestured to the bed with a sweep of his arms and a comical bow. “Sleep awaits, dear one”

It didn’t take long to figure out a comfortable position together. They seemed to align so perfectly. Charles had even climbed into the left side of the bed, conveniently leaving Erik his preferred right side. Erik tended to sleep on his back, so Charles curled up under his arm and tucked his head under Erik’s chin, soft brown hair tickling the underside of his jaw. Erik turned onto his side slightly to wrap around Charles more and threw an arm around his waist, reveling in the skin on skin contact.

He felt a kiss being pressed to his neck and a mumbled, “Goodnight, love you”

Erik laughed a bit at the adorableness that is Charles Xavier and tilted his head to kiss Charles on the head.

“Gute nacht, schatz”

* * *

Waking up with Charles was Erik’s new favorite thing.

As always, Erik woke with the sun. Only to find himself with no blankets. It seemed that somewhere in the night, Charles had kicked them all off, sheets and a few pillows included. Before he could figure out how he wasn’t cold, light snoring met his ears.

Along with his soccer practice, Charles had also shifted completely on top of Erik.

He didn’t want to wake Charles up, but he had to get up now or the twins would spot a weakness and attack.

With a gentle prod, Erik set to waking his new love up without too much of a fuss, hopefully anyway.

“Charles. Darling, it’s time to wake up. Or at least relent your death grip”

There wasn’t even a twitch.

Sighing, Erik started thinking up strategies to transfer Charles over to his side of the bed. Seeing as Charles was a heavy sleeper, there wouldn’t be too much trouble.

But, the minute Erik tried to shift to the edge of the bed and away from Charles, sleepy whines started to fill the morning air.

“Don’t go. Sleep”

Or at least that is what Erik thought he said, as Charles face was smashed into Erik’s chest. Consequently, Charles’ arms also tightened around his waist.

“I’m sorry schatz but I have to. You can sleep for a bit more though” Erik tried to bargain.

“No”

“Well now you’re just being unreasonable”

“No”

“Honestly, you are worse than Pietro”

“But, sleep”

“Which you can enjoy if you would _let me get up_ ”

With a dramatic sigh, Charles rolled off the bed, eyes still firmly shut. He blindly groped around for the floor bound blankets, letting out another whine when he came up empty. Bending down against the protest of his back, Erik picked up the covers and lovingly tucked them around his sleepy Charles.

He kissed Charles softly on the lips before heading out the door.

“Oh and if you aren’t up by seven I will send in the kids”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not my best, I know. But I realized that I hadn't posted anything in a while so I whipped this up to tide you over until I post a better one.   
> Hope you enjoyed! Leave comments below, if you so wish.


	8. Chapter 8

Erik should have known. He should have known that this may have been the worst idea to ever be followed through with. Emma Frost should never be within a hundred yards of Charles. Ever.

HE should have sucked it up and went into work and met her there. It’s not like he wasn’t overdue for a visit. His employees were probably getting complacent with no one to scream at them. Sure, he had Azazel, who could be downright terrifying when he wanted. The red skin helped.

But Erik?

He could put the fear of god into an atheist. On an off day.

That’s how he runs such an efficient company. Not one of his workers would even _think_ of stepping a toe out of line.

He sometimes missed having an office out of the house sometimes. It would be a nice change for a couple of hours. But no. He just had to think of the children. And not wanting to leave Charles for more than a minute. That too.

In hindsight, he could have just texted him under the desk and dealt with Emma’s disapproval. He usually does it anyways. She probably wouldn’t have even been surprised.

Erik didn’t do any of that though. Instead he has not one, but two telepaths sitting on his couch, having a mental conversation that was most likely about him. What even is his life? At least Pietro was on his side. He had been stealing small items out of Emma’s oversized, white purse for the last ten minutes. He should probably stop him. That sounds like responsible parenting. But when Emma went to grab a lip gloss out and found nothing, the look on her face was worth raising a kleptomaniac.

He cleared his throat to get their attention. Immediately, Charles turned and his smile turned from being pleasant and charming as usual to a thousand watt smile when their eyes met. Erik couldn’t help but smile widely back, which Pietro and Wanda said reminded them of a shark, and sat down next to him.

“Hey schatz” he murmured, causing Charles to blush.

“That is so sweet I think I’m getting diabetes” Emma intoned, half joking, half deadpan serious. Erik doesn’t even know how she manages that.

Erik glared at Emma, “Could you not stick your nose in everyone’s business just this once?”

“I like to consistent” she said with a shrug and smirk.

“Can you two go even a minute without bickering?” Charles asked, inching closer into Erik’s side, who ended up just putting an arm around Charles and pulling him as close as possible.

“No” they both said at the same time, and then proceeded to shoot each other scathing glances.

“This is supposed to be a business meeting anyways. Not stealing my boyfriend” Erik said.

“Boyfriend?” Charles said, shocked but pleased.

“I guess we haven’t discussed that have we. Are you ok with that?” Erik asked, completely ignoring Emma.

“Of course. There’s nothing that would please me more”

It was amazing how Charles could say these little thing just off the cuff like that. Maybe It was because Erik wasn’t used to it, but he loved it. They aren’t particularly over the top romantic but it might as well be to Erik.

“Wait a second. Have the two of you even been on a date?” Emma said incredulously.

An awkward silence hung in the air.

“Unbelievable”

“In our defense, we’ve only been together one day” Charles pointed out.

“That is no excuse. You are grown men, raising two children together, _and living together_. You should have gotten together ages ago. It’s not like Erik wasn’t all for it”

“Hey!” Erik interjected, determinedly not blushing.

Charles patted his hand, “She has a point, love”

Erik did not pout. Absolutely not.

“Look, I will even watch those hellion you call children”

“They are not hellions. They are perfectly well mannered children thank you very much” Erik insisted.

Before he even managed to get the last word out, Pietro ran in with Wanda’s teddy bear, holding it high above his head and screaming at the top of his lungs. Wanda was close behind, a crayon box in her arms as she threw individual ones at Pietro. A stray projectile landed in Emma’s lap.

“Twenty dollars an hour sound good?”

“Not even close, Lehnsherr”

* * *

 

That night, Charles was making dinner, letting the children help. The radio was on and they were all dancing, Charles singing along. Erik was leaning against the door, just observing his little family. The kitchen was full of love and laughter and it made Erik’s heartache. In a good way though. He had never been happier in his entire life.

“Oh Erik! Join us, why don’t you?” Charles exclaimed when he noticed Erik.

“Yeah, we’re making pasta Papa!” Wanda said excitedly.

Erik walked over and scooped her up in his arms, “Sounds delightful. Are you two helping out Charles?”

Wanda nodded but Pietro was too focused on stirring the sauce to even acknowledge his father.

Tapping Pietro on the shoulder to get his attention, Erik told them to go wash up. After some protests from Pietro who wanted to keep helping, he finally managed to send them off.

“Erik could you drain the pasta please?” Charles asked over his shoulder as he set out plates.

With a quick motion of his hand, the pot lifted itself and floated over to the sink.

“Show off” Charles teased.

“You love it” Erik said, walking over to Charles to wrap his arms around him, Chalres back pressed into his chest.

“Just a little”

Erik suddenly got nervous as he remembered why he came in here in the first place. He had wanted to ask Charles out on a date. Technically, they had already told Emma to be at the house next Friday, but Erik didn’t want to take out the notion of asking someone.

“So, uh, about Friday, do you, uh, want to, maybe, go out to dinner with me” Erik stammered out, being uncharacteristically shy. He knew that if anyone from his work saw him like this, they would laugh. Erik was a risk taker who never second guessed himself, or tripped over his words. There was just something about Charles that turned Erik into a babbling mess.

Charles turned in his arms to look at him, an amused smile playing on his face, “Are you seriously asking me on a date that I booked the babysitter for?”

Erik blushed, “Maybe”

“God, I love you” Charles said, half laughing.

“I love you too but that wasn’t an answer”

Charles rolled his eyes, “Yes, I would love to go out with you”

“Excellent. Now, what do you want to do?”

“Don’t even try. I’m leaving that up to you, darling”

“Scheiße. I haven’t planned a date in ages” Erik groaned.

“Language,” Charles chastised, “In that case, it’ll be good practice. Now come on, dinner is ready”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not too shabby I think. And Charles and Erik are going on a date! How exciting.  
> Leave a comment if you liked it! Or kudos. Or anything.


End file.
